Printed Circuit Board Basics: An Introduction to the Pcb Industry [Paperback]

Michael Flatt (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Backbeat Books; 3 edition (January 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879304863
• ISBN-13: 978-0879304867
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,401,624 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A really basic book, February 15, 2001

By 

S. Derosier "deRosier" (Fairfield, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Printed Circuit Board Basics: An Introduction to the Pcb Industry (Paperback)

PCB Basics is just as it says--basic. It gives you a very brief overview of what PCBs are and how they are manufactured. It goes into some amount of detail in how a "typical" PCB is constructed, but that is about all. For someone with almost no knowledge about PCBs specifically, it gives a nice overview of some basic vocabulary.

My biggest complaint about this book is that it seemed outdated, despite the most recent edition of it being published at the very end of 1997. The technology it discusses is typically mid-1980s or very early 1990s. I don't know if the PCB manufactures are that behind the times, but I find it hard to believe that the current drilling machines are still communicated to via punch tapes and that customers are still sending their CAD files via data tapes.

Fortunately, the technology being a little outdated doesn't affect the primary discussion much--how a PCB is manufactured. While the tools may be a little more sophisticated the basic process is still the same.

This is a decent book if you want a basic introduction to PCBs, but don't count on it for a large amount of detail or any design help.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good basic information, October 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Printed Circuit Board Basics: An Introduction to the Pcb Industry (Paperback)

This book was a good introduction for someone completely unfamiliar with PCB's. The other reviewers are very correct that it is out of date by at least 10 years, but it is a good book.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally, A Good Book on PCB Basics, February 24, 2001

By 

"[e-mail]" (Elizabeth, NJ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Printed Circuit Board Basics: An Introduction to the Pcb Industry (Paperback)

There are plenty of PCB books out there, but Flatt's Printed Circuit Board Basics seems to be the only one that brings it all together in a basic, short, orderly format. If you don't mind searching through four or five hundred pages for basic info on PCBs then the other books are fine. But why do that, when Flatt's book does it for you.

He gives you a good idea of the steps of how a standard PCB is manufactured. Although a few steps maybe outdated (ex. punch cards). There are even some IPC and Mil-Spec standards given, but here again some standards maybe outdated (but you can find the latest versions on the web).

The title of the book says it all. Get the book if you want a basic foundation on PCBs.